Let's talk MotoGP: Bagnaia's masterpiece

The Spanish Grand Prix has delivered its verdict. As per usual, we are going to draw up three lessons relating to this busy weekend.


I) Bagnaia on another planet

Pecco's performance should be shown to every young person interested in motorcycle racing. The qualifying session alone is already historic. On the one hand, it was very interesting to note the total absence of signs of irritation. However, Francesco saw his first round canceled due to the fall of Jorge Martin at turn n°1, in addition to being followed by Marc Márquez, who, as more and more often, plays this little game that is particularly unpleasant for the hare (Mir in Qatar).

With Olympian calm, bagnaia achieves a fast first lap, beaten by Quarterly. Then, the Ducati official gives us his masterclass. 1'36''170, fastest lap completed here, and 0”473 ahead of Fabio. A world of difference, especially in our time. This is the first pole not awarded to a Honda or a Yamaha in 16 years and 17 rounds at Jerez de la Frontera. Immense.

Then, the race. Again, nothing to say. Even if Bagnaia came back strongly from Argentina, no one could have bet on such a dominant victory. In the lead from the start, he achieved a grand slam, increasingly rare in motor sports (pole, best lap in the race, victory by leading all laps). Certainly, Fabio was getting closer and closer at the end but Pecco undoubtedly had it under his belt, as evidenced by the total absence of errors.

This victory means a lot, and " answers " directly to that of Quarta' in Portugal. Bagnaia has achieved what no other in the 21st century has been able to do: create doubt among observers in a single race. As a reminder, no driver has been crowned world champion by being so late at the start of the season


II) Let’s not forget “El Diablo”

 

After reflection, Fabio Quartararo's weekend is almost perfect. The latter had a good qualifying session with two big laps, also followed by Márquez on the second exit. On the checkerboard, he also has a nice lead over third, in the person ofAleix Espargaro.

His race was free of errors, and he was never left behind by Bagnaia. As it stands, there's no reason to be disappointed with this second place in such an unpredictable season. Only two drivers have been on the podium at least three times since Losail, which is testament to his consistency.

Ultimately, the only question is psychological. This is, statistically, the circuit that is most successful for Fabio, his garden. He absolutely must not let this seemingly difficult to reproduce performance impress him.

Indeed, Bagnaia starts winning races in this way every Sunday, we will have to ask ourselves questions. Fabio did the job, increased his lead and showed, in the last laps, that he was not that far away. This is also what he insisted on (the gap with third) during the post-race interview.

The context lends itself to psychological harm, but it doesn't seem to touch it : transfer window on track, Suzuki perhaps on the departure (so two very talented riders to replace, potentially), Le Mans coming, where the Yamaha, like the Ducati, are strong. As it stands, this is not a turning point of the season. The wind is still in the direction of the French which is, mentally, one of the best since 2021. But we must continue to be strong – exactly like in Jerez or Termas – even more than two seconds behind the first.

Benefiting from the “false” status of favorite or “too early favorite”, Bagnaia no longer has so much pressure ; it's up to Fabio to play, and therefore to dictate the rules. But in motor sports, it is much easier to be a hunter than a hunted if you play a championship in a duel (Rossy 2015 et 2006, Kent 2015, Gardner 2021…) It is for this reason that the Italian should not be forgotten given his position overall, which is very anecdotal at this time of the season.

III) Warning for Pramac


Let's end on a completely different note. While the team was described as "sister" rather than "daughter" by Davide Tardozzi in Portugal, Pramac is having a very average start to the season. In Jerez, the team did not score any points, which had not happened since the Teruel Grand Prix (Aragón) 2020.

Jorge Martín fell for the fourth time in six races, the worst record in the entire field. Zarco, also on the ground, is having a checkered start to the season but is staying afloat. Pramac perhaps suffers from this status as a team almost on par with the factory. Riders usually feel less pressure in smaller structures but with the proliferation of Ducatis this year, the “little ones” no longer exist. All teams equipped with Desmosedici can potentially reach the podium.

Martín is young, in a satellite team: his place is not yet on the highest step of the podium nor in pole position in each race, iHe shouldn't have to aim so high. This situation is directly linked to the leveling of performance, a policy initiated and implemented since 2016.

That's all for today ! We will return to the case Aleix Espargaró separately, a little later. What do you think of the championship battle and Bagnaia's performance? Tell us in the comments!

 

Cover photo: Michelin Motrosport